Tools for COVID-19 Research

Researchers around the world are working earnestly to study SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. This concerted effort is critical to rapidly generate the knowledge needed to mitigate the effects of this global emergency, as well as to produce the data to support new diagnostic tools, treatments, and vaccines.

Having the right tools and support is essential for accelerating scientific discovery for COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2. As Scientists Helping Scientists, STEMCELL Technologies is here to help with relevant products, resources, and support.

Products for COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 Research

Studying Respiratory Virus Infection with PneumaCult™

Air-liquid-interface (ALI) culture of primary airway epithelial cells is a uniquely suited model system for the study of respiratory infections in vitro. Learn about the features that make ALI cultures a physiologically relevant model system, and see how researchers are using this system for infection studies of the novel coronavirus and other respiratory viruses. Achieving physiologically relevant ALI airway cultures requires a culture media system that is optimized for differentiation, such as PneumaCult™.

Studying Immune Response to Viral Infections

Access to the right cell populations is critical for studying the immune response to infections by viruses such as the novel coronavirus. This is true whether you are using pre-isolated immune cells or performing your own cell isolations from blood products. Working with a reliable, flexible supplier of human primary cells* can make all the difference to securing the cells you need. Choosing robust, efficient technologies can also help you progress faster, such as using EasySep™ column-free technology to obtain highly purified cells in as little as 8 minutes.

Therapeutics Development

Vaccine Development

Learn about tools and assays for developing vaccines, including products for sourcing and isolating immune cells, assessing vaccine candidates, and developing production lines for recombinant vaccines.

Processing Samples for SARS-CoV-2 Research

Recovering viruses or viral components directly from infected cells can provide important insight into the viral pathogenic process. The following products can help you safely transport infected biological specimens and ensure that sample processing supports high-quality results.

Investigating the Role of Extracellular Vesicles in Infection

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) play integral roles in a diverse array of biological processes, including viral infection. EasySep™ column-free immunomagnetic isolation kits are an efficient way to isolate EVs from human plasma/serum and cell-conditioned medium. EVs isolated with EasySep™ are suitable for downstream analysis and characterization by Western blot, mass spectrometry, qPCR, and small micro RNAseq.

Studying Intestinal Viral Infections with IntestiCult™

While SARS-CoV-2 primarily targets and affects the respiratory system, various other coronavirus species are known to infect the intestinal epithelium of both humans and zoonotic vectors. Intestinal organoids and organoid-derived monolayers exhibit characteristics that closely mimic the in vivo intestinal epithelium, making them valuable model systems for intestinal viral infection. IntestiCult™ medium maintains the tissue-resident stem cell populations, enabling rapid expansion and long-term maintenance of intestinal organoid cultures.

Kidney Organoids for SARS-CoV-2 Research

COVID-19 disease is characterized by multi-organ failure, indicating possible viral infection across a variety of tissues. Kidney organoids, which have been shown to express the coronavirus receptor, ACE2, can serve as an organ-specific model for studying the systemic impacts of COVID-19. Learn about how researchers are using kidney organoids for infection studies of SARS-CoV-2. Culturing kidney organoids relies upon a robust system for differentiating human pluripotent stem cells, such as STEMdiff™.

Click here for more information and data on our suite of freezing and storage media.

Contract Assay Services

Our Contract Assay Services group may also be able to support generating critical experimental results to meet project milestones. Please contact us to explore whether contract research would be a good option to support your goals.

Related Resources

Digital Resources for Your Research

Explore virtual support and resources to stay productive and connected with your field.